South Africa has been going through a transformation process and mental health is no exception. As this process of transformation unfolds, the psychological service rendering is being redressed following the criticism on the previous mental health care system. Psychological services were only available in the white suburban areas, therefore they were not meeting the needs of the majority of South Africans. In the new political dispensation there is a demand for more psychological services to be made available to the historically disadvantaged communities. There is a need to explore the knowledge about and attitudes towards psychological services by black communities in rural areas. The study is aimed at exploring these aspects, as it is essential in establishing appropriate community-based psychological services rendering. In-depth interviews were carried out on a randomly selected sample of 10 participants from a rural village in Hebron. The study indicated that there was a reasonable knowledge about psychological services. The main sources of knowledge possessed by the people are mainly from the media, studying psychology and having had an exposure to the psychologists previously. The attitude towards psychological services depends on whether the people personally or their loved ones had a positive experience with a psychologist. Educational level was found to be playing a major role, as people with higher level of education had positive attitude towards psychological services. The level of the actual use of psychological services was very low due to lack of such services in the area. The participants expressed the needs for the psychologists to work in collaboration with the communities. There was a need for the psychological services to be made available in the community and that there should be awareness talks regarding these services. The results and implications are discussed and there are suggestions for research. / Dissertation (MA (Clinical Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Psychology / unrestricted

Thesis (MA (Psychology))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This literature review follows the early origins of the integration of psychological services into Primary Health Care (PHC) to its promulgation by law under the new dispensation in South Africa post-1994. With a recent re-commitment in 2008 by government to PHC for health service delivery, the biomedical orientation of PHC is inherently problematic as the location for psychological services and runs contrary to a comprehensive discourse of care as envisioned locally and by the World Health Organisation (WHO). With such shifts in policy at a macro level and in a context in which the relevance of psychological theorising and praxis is under scrutiny, this review has highlighted that a bottom-up approach is necessitated; specifically one that will facilitate a convergence between policy, theory and practice, with its foundations informed by research. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie literatuuroorsig begin by die vroeë beginpunt waar sielkundige dienste by Primêre Gesondheidsorg (PHC) ingelyf is, en volg die gebeure tot waar nuwe wetgewing hieroor in die nuwe post-1994-dispensasie in Suid-Afrika uitgevaardig is. Met die regering wat homself in 2008 herverbind het tot PHC vir gesondheiddiensverskaffing is die biomediese fokus van PHC vir sielkundige dienste inherent problematies, omdat dit in teenstelling met omvattende diskoers oor versorging staan, soos dit plaaslik en deur die Wêreldgesondheidsorgorganisasie (WHO) in die vooruitsig gestel word. Met makrovlakverskuiwings in beleid en in konteks waarin die toepaslikheid van teoretisering en praktyk op die gebied van die sielkunde onder die loep is, beklemtoon hierdie verslag dit dat onder-na-bo-benadering nodig is; spesifiek een wat sameloping tussen beleid, teorie en praktyk sal fasiliteer, en wat gegrond is op navorsing.

The aim of this thesis is to describe the stress factors and burnout, particularly in ambulance firefighters. In the theoretical section provides basic information on the Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic, the specifics of their work and are also given information regarding stress, posttraumatic stress disorder , burnout and psychological services to the Fire and Rescue Service of the Czech Republic. This is complemented by the findings of other states. The practical part is focused on the processing and evaluation of a questionnaire survey to map the most important factors of stress and burnout among staff of the Fire Rescue Corps of the Karlovy Vary Region and the Central Region.

My work deals with difficulties that can arise when firemen supply psychological first aid to victims in emergency situations. The theoretical part is divided into three sections, issues firemen face during procedures, supplying psychological first aid and communication. Furthermore, I discuss issues concerning stress, listening, influencing, specific communication regarding emergency situations and communication with the physically disabled. The practical part contains the results of questionnaires aimed at obtaining the knowledge and opinions of firemen dealing with psychological first aid to emergency victims. My conclusion submits proposals about learning methods for firemen dealing with psychological first aid.

The present study attempted to assess the effectiveness of the Zimbabwean secondary school guidance and counselling services from school counsellors' and students' perspective. Available literature shows that students worldwide, including Zimbabwe, experience problems which schools should solve through the provision of guidance and counselling. It was therefore, important to the researcher to assess the effectiveness of the school guidance and counselling services in meeting students' concerns. The research design consisted of a literature and an empirical study. The survey method was used in the empirical study. A self constructed questionnaire was used. Three hundred and fourteen school counsellors and 636 students participated in this study. The SAS/STAT version 9.1 was used to analyse the data. One way and combined two way frequency tables were calculated. Ratios were calculated to establish the relative rating of each item. Chi-square tests were also calculated. The study revealed that there were differences between the level of the school guidance and counselling services in Zimbabwean secondary schools and the international arena. For example, school guidance and counselling services policy in Zimbabwe was not mandatory as compared to the international policies. The Zimbabwean school guidance and counselling services were not always planned for at the beginning of each year, Students and parents were not frequently involved in needs assessment while the services were not frequently evaluated in comparison with those in the international arena. The study also revealed that some biographical variables significantly influenced the way the respondents responded to given items while others did not. The study revealed that the majority of both school counsellors and students viewed the school guidance and counselling services as beneficial and school counsellors as effectively playing their role. The study further revealed that the effectiveness of the Zimbabwean secondary school guidance and counselling services was negatively affected by lack of resources and training in guidance and counselling and non-counselling duties performed by school counsellors. Recommendations for future approaches and strategies in secondary school guidance and counselling services in Zimbabwe are made. Areas for further research are proposed. / Educational Studies / D.Ed. (Psychology of Education)

In this article post-shooting trauma is utilized as an arbitrary punctuation to indicate how police officers communicate their distress during this period of rapid transition in South Africa. It is argued that the medical model (with its attendant lineal causal explanations and descriptions) is inhibitively limited in describing what police officers are presently experiencing. The author motivates the advantages of perceiving and describing events from an ecosystemic perspective (which provides a contextual understanding and emphasizes relationships} . "Stress" is described as an aspect of the system as a whole and not singularly attributable to individuals alone. Among others new policing rules and roles, the turnover in personnel, and the rate of's'ocio-political changes are shown to contribute. It is argued that the Police, as society's guardians of "power" have become the "symptom bearers" for a society in the painful process of adapting to change. Recommendations regarding possible interventions are made. / Psychology / M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

The present study attempted to assess the effectiveness of the Zimbabwean secondary school guidance and counselling services from school counsellors' and students' perspective. Available literature shows that students worldwide, including Zimbabwe, experience problems which schools should solve through the provision of guidance and counselling. It was therefore, important to the researcher to assess the effectiveness of the school guidance and counselling services in meeting students' concerns. The research design consisted of a literature and an empirical study. The survey method was used in the empirical study. A self constructed questionnaire was used. Three hundred and fourteen school counsellors and 636 students participated in this study. The SAS/STAT version 9.1 was used to analyse the data. One way and combined two way frequency tables were calculated. Ratios were calculated to establish the relative rating of each item. Chi-square tests were also calculated. The study revealed that there were differences between the level of the school guidance and counselling services in Zimbabwean secondary schools and the international arena. For example, school guidance and counselling services policy in Zimbabwe was not mandatory as compared to the international policies. The Zimbabwean school guidance and counselling services were not always planned for at the beginning of each year, Students and parents were not frequently involved in needs assessment while the services were not frequently evaluated in comparison with those in the international arena. The study also revealed that some biographical variables significantly influenced the way the respondents responded to given items while others did not. The study revealed that the majority of both school counsellors and students viewed the school guidance and counselling services as beneficial and school counsellors as effectively playing their role. The study further revealed that the effectiveness of the Zimbabwean secondary school guidance and counselling services was negatively affected by lack of resources and training in guidance and counselling and non-counselling duties performed by school counsellors. Recommendations for future approaches and strategies in secondary school guidance and counselling services in Zimbabwe are made. Areas for further research are proposed. / Educational Studies / D.Ed. (Psychology of Education)

In this article post-shooting trauma is utilized as an arbitrary punctuation to indicate how police officers communicate their distress during this period of rapid transition in South Africa. It is argued that the medical model (with its attendant lineal causal explanations and descriptions) is inhibitively limited in describing what police officers are presently experiencing. The author motivates the advantages of perceiving and describing events from an ecosystemic perspective (which provides a contextual understanding and emphasizes relationships} . "Stress" is described as an aspect of the system as a whole and not singularly attributable to individuals alone. Among others new policing rules and roles, the turnover in personnel, and the rate of's'ocio-political changes are shown to contribute. It is argued that the Police, as society's guardians of "power" have become the "symptom bearers" for a society in the painful process of adapting to change. Recommendations regarding possible interventions are made. / Psychology / M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

This is a study of standardization in complexity. The context is innovation policy. Why do standardization and innovation go hand in hand and what does the interaction of interests between public and private actors look like in the “profile” of the standardization process? The nature of technical specifications, Lead Market Initiatives in Europe, social innovations, eco-innovations and psychological services for recruitment are the target areas of this study done in the style of Science, Technology and Society. We decrypt the codes of the expected behavior veiled in standards, the strategically selective sectoral integration of the European Internal Market, the emergence of innovation in standardized areas, the nature of the European innovation policy and the mission of each particular innovative sector. This research contains answers on how the European Union will move toward a more state-like organization bypassing the sovereignty of its member states. Standardization is a bouquet of strategic activities where each has its purpose, destination and time-framework. By studying standardization, we are able to look into the European future.